Alright you all know the drill: I don't own Warcraft or WoW; Blizzard does. Now then, let us begin.
Chapter Eight: Something Funny Happened On The Way To Andorhal – Prt III
It was dark out, and two necromancers were standing guard near the graveyard within the perimeter of their base, which was the farthest south of all the other structures. Its sole purpose was to act as the ultimate defense against any and all attackers, as they could use the corpses that the structure would find deep within the earth and drag them within its perimeter. The science behind it would take up all day and night just to try and explain, and much longer for one to comprehend it to be physically possible, so let's just say 'because its magic; what other explanation is there?', and continue on.
"We have been stationed here for three days now, and still there's nothing here to defend against. I understand that Kel'Thuzad is trying to get the grain moved out, but surely we should have seen some kind of alliance force by now." "It is best not to question the command of Kel'Thuzad, or would you rather be made into additional labor?" Both of them shuddered at the thought of being turned into a ghoul; worst form of a demotion, but more permanent. "Regardless, we have our orders, and therefore shall carry them out."
Unknown to the two of them, there was a transparent floating green eye with a black slit at the center, watching the two before moving further into the base…
_Not so far off, in the woods close to the Undead base…_
Eidolon was keeping himself stationary, one eye closed as the recently summoned Kalcifer watched the warlock with twisted glee, or at least it looked like it. "Yes, well done. As you can see, the Eye of Kilrogg, while it doesn't have a mind of its own or carry combat capabilities, is much more dangerous by acting as reconnaissance; cloaking as well as finding anything that is… hidden to the naked eyes. This takes away any enemy's element of surprise, allowing you to save more lives." Yes, he had to prey on the young man's desire to protest instead of just destroy, but at least it got the job done to get him to learn some of the more… collateral-based spells. "Now then, I believe we've wasted enough time on this for now; you can perfect it at a later date. We should be hitting those two places you've been meaning to take on. I warn you though; that Hall of the Damned won't go down easily."
Eidolon finally opened his other eye, the Fel radiating inside of it fading away in a few seconds before looking towards said hall, glaring at it as he performed the Soul Link with the Fel Imp, finding himself in a state of mind compared to that of a pyromaniac with one directive; burn the Hall to a cinder, along with the enemy. He breathed out hot air, a grin forming on his face as he slammed both hands on the earth. What came out of it was two spells being performed at once; The Rain of Fire that was taking care of the cultists harvesting from the nearby haunted mines, but the Hall of the Damned was being hit by something else entirely.
You see, when Kalcifer took the Link with Eidolon, the Fel Imp had knowledge of some of the more… destructive spells that a warlock could learn, but as it turned out his 'master' just wasn't strong enough to control it. That didn't mean that it was impossible to cast, as he had more than enough Fel to execute it. So the spell he channeled through him caused the earth beneath the Hall to crack and slowly rise up, something red and hot glowing just beneath the surface before it shot up and out. A miniature volcano-earthquake destroyed the foundation of the large structure, making it fall apart and dematerialize in an explosion of green particles and shattered runes.
Eidolon, who now saw that the structures were dealt with, cut off the link and fell to his knees in exhaustion, before looking to his summon. "What… did you… make me do?" The Fel Imp was laughing as he approached the downed warlock. "That, good sir, was one of the highest tiers of a warlock's spellcasting: Cataclysm. Channeling the Fel into the very earth can allow the user to spawn a perimeter of fire and chaos under the enemy's feet almost without warning… then detonates. But I'm sure this can all be told at a much later time as we are on the clock, and in enemy territory still."
_With the Strike Team outside of Undead Base_
Arthas, Jaina and Sylvanas, along with the soldiers and healers, had to keep themselves balanced as they felt the aftershock of the Cataclysm spell, as well as a nice view of the massive structure that came crashing down before vanishing in a flash of green. "By the Light…" Arthas was rather shocked about the sudden destruction, but Jaina and Sylvanas were more amazed by the display of power from their warlock friend. "Oh my… just what is that little Imp teaching him to go and do that?" Jaina wasn't sure on how to answer the High Elf's question, but it was clear that his new mentor was teaching him well… for now. "Arthas, now is the time."
Getting a nod from the prince, he raised his Warhammer and pointed it at the opposing base. "Alright men, the time has come. Let's show these undead how REAL warriors fight!" Getting a warcry from the soldiers, their march began to destroy the rest of the base, as the two necromancers were shot down in seconds by the Ranger-General.
_An Hour Later_
It was well after the fight was done, and now there were sentries stationed just outside of Andorhal along with a small base to replenish on more gold and lumber; better them than the enemy. Eidolon was shown questioning looks form the women, whom was lucky enough to dismiss the Fel Imp before the rest of the forces arrived, and simply said that 'he'll explain under better circumstances' before Arthas came along. "Alright, now that we have a good perimeter set up here, let's get inside and find out what's really going on."
_Andorhal_
The party of four heroes, six footmen, four healers, three dwarven marksmen and equal amount of High Elven archers, and two mortar teams made their way into the heart of the burning remains of a once buzzling city, with barely a corpse in sight. They had a good idea on why, but they didn't want to think about it as they soon found several ghouls consuming from the near-empty piles of grain, among them was Kel'Thuzad, who turned to face them with a grin. "Hello again, children. I see you've managed to make it this far, but I must deliver to you a warning: leave well enough alone. Your curiosity will be the death of you." Arthas marched up to the front of the part and glared hate at the former Arch-Mage. "Are you responsible for this plague necromancer? Is this cult YOUR doing?"
A chuckle from the necromancer was heard before he replied. "Yes, I ordered the Cult of the Damned to distribute the plagued grain…. But the sole credit is not mine." Jaina was confused on the matter, but still glared at the elder. "What do you mean?" "You see, I serve the dreadlord Mal'Ganis. He is the one who commands this Scourge that will cleans the land and establish a paradise of eternal darkness." "And what is this Scourge meant to cleanse?" The old wizard looked to the outspoken warlock and raised his staff, making the carved black dragon's eyes glow green. "Why, the living, of course. His plans are already in motion, however, but you are free to try and stop it. IF you live to see it, that is…" He made his exit as the small horde of ghouls began to charge at his command, intending to shred and consume the flesh of the living.
Eidolon was the first to shot out. "SHIELD FORMATION! Shoot these freaks back into their graves!" He fired a Shadowbolt when the marksmen opened fire, shredding apart most of the charging horde of undead before a wave of Blizzard stopped them all in their tracks. "Alright, let's go hunt ourselves a necromancer." Sylvanas spotted the retreating necromancer and took aim, but was interrupted by a rising skeleton soldier that went in for a cleaver strike. She dodged that, but it used its shield to bash her into the ground. Before it could take this advantage, a sword found itself lodged into its shield…. and skull, falling apart in seconds. She was soon helped up by Eidolon, who went and reclaimed his sword. "Careful Syl, these guys don't fight fair, and neither should we." Getting a nod from her, they continued to push on.
They found his trail to have gone shortly outside of Andorhal, where they found a defensive formation of ghouls and skeletal archers. Footmen had to bunker down while they marched on to protect the others from flying arrows, while their own archers and marksmen retuned fire in kind, ending with Jaina raining down Blizzards upon their heads until the formation broke apart. It was further in, however, that they ran into a real problem. "Oh come on, not more of those things!" Indeed, because further up ahead was a small battalion of Abominations. "Mortar teams, rain fire on that structure; it's making more of these fat bastards. Jaina, Sylvanas, on me; we need to hold the line until the mortar teams can take down that structure."
The women agreed with the Prince's command, but then they noticed that they were down a person. A very important person to them. "Wait, where is Eidolon?" Arthas took a quick scan around, then growled out in rage. "Did he really just abandon us now of all times?!"
_With said Warlock…_
Eidolon was sprinting around the fight to try and cut off the retreating Necromancer and found him waiting around a throne made of stone. "Kel'Thuzad!" The older man looked to the approaching figure and laughed aloud. "Well, it seems we're finally alone at last…. Warlock." The sounds of combat and mortar fire could be heard, but it was ignored and not in sight as the two sorcerers of their respective magic stared down the other. "So you finally found the answer of greater power, my old mentor. Northrend really did have the answers you sought out. Although I'm surprised that your still alive… mostly" "Yes, but I am more than I once was, young Eidolon. I have the knowledge over death, and the source of it all." The young man decided to change the subject as he looked into the glowing green eyes. "But I rather doubt that a demon of all things would 'command' this Scourge of yours."
Kel'Thuzad laughed aloud at the declaration before replying. "My my, you truly have become wiser in my absence… good to know. Yes, while Mal'Ganis is officially in command of the Scourge acting in this region… he is not the true master over the undead. Unfortunately you may not live long enough to see it!" He cast out a green orb made into a laughing skull that the warlock had to dodge who shot out a Shadow Bolt in return, only for it to bounce off of a quick defensive spell. "A spell without channeling… you really have grown over the years. It's a shame I could not bring you with me; you would have made an excellent necromancer." "Save it for someone who CARES!" He shot out another Shadow Bolt that was again reflected, but the wizened necromancer had to use his staff to block the oncoming sword swing. The two kept the clash going for a few seconds more before they had to break it up, leaving the old wizard exposed to a swing at his thigh… only to be shot back from a blast of arcane. "Just because I now serve the undead doesn't meant that I haven't refined my own skills as an Arch-Mage."
"Good to know, because I got a few new tricks up my sleeve too." Eidolon waved his hand over the necromancer, who's magic-negating barrier was now caught aflame, threatening to destroy it and get at him from the inside. Kel acted quickly and used a frost nova to put out the flames, but he wasn't quick enough to recover from the onslaught inside his head from Agony. However, he was still stable enough to stop the blade from hitting his stomach, but he wasn't prepared for when a hand was pressed over his face and felt… something be pulled from him. 'Oh god; he's draining the life-force right out of me!' He shot another bolt of the laughing skull point blank, causing him to dislodge the draining warlock. The connection lasted for a few seconds more before fading, leaving Eidolon with some damaged clothes but otherwise he didn't show any pain. Not that there was any to show after the lingering Life Drain.
"I am amazed Eidolon, truly you have become an impressive force to be reckoned with, but this is where it ends." He began to charge up for one of his larger attacks to strike down the warlock… only to find the hilt of a long sword sticking into his chest cavity. "It does end… for you."
It was here that the rest of the alliance forces arrived to watch the old necromancer try to keep his footing as his chest bled out what little blood he had left in his body. "Fools, my death means little to Mal'Ganis' plans for Strathome, or the advance of the Scourge. For, now, the scourging of this land…. Begins…" Finally, he fell onto his side as his body began to decay quickly until nothing but bone was left.
Sighing heavily, Eidolon dropped to one knee… only to be kicked onto the ground via angry Arthas. "I should have your head caved in right now for your actions." Sylvanas wasn't having any of it as she stepped between the two and glared down at the much younger human. "Stand down, Arthas. He was acting under my command, so therefore he is my responsibility, not yours. And if you have yet to notice," she turned to the still downed warlock and pointed out the damage that still remained of the two spell-caster's conflict. "He managed to keep the enemy leader from retreating to wreak havoc another day, and even managed to kill a former, but still powerful, Arch-Mage. Don't go and tell me that you would have been able to pull such a similar feat off by yourself, prince." When the young warlock finally got himself upright, he was soon facing down the neutral stare from the Ranger-General. "While you did indeed pull off an impressive feat, I will have to advise that you refrain from charging after the enemy again… at least, not without my rangers for back-up. Is that understood, Eidolon?" Getting a 'yes ma'am', she turned to the seething Knight with a smirk that said 'I got you now brat.' "There, the situation has been rectified. For now, however, we must be making our way to Strathome. Something about how that necromancer said that we were free to try and stop it leaves me unsettled."
She called out to her rangers to get their gear and prepare to move out, whom was soon followed by Eidolon and "Wait, Jaina?" The sorceress looked with rage at the crown prince, not bothering to answer him before moving along to catch up with the high-elves. In his slightly depressed state, he gave his men orders to clean up around Andorhal and burry what fallen they could find. Moving quickly he followed after the high-elves further along the King's Road to their next destination. And possibly some more answers about the Scourge and Mal'Ganis.
_Hearthglen_
It was in the next rising morning that we find a company of high-elven archers and priests following their Ranger-General, her second-in-command, the agent of the Kirin Tor and Crown Prince into the village of Hearthglen, where they could see that dwarves and footmen were having their morning training routine. Jaina sighed heavily as she leaned on her staff for support, while Sylvanas and Eidolon helped her remain steady. "Hearthglen, finally. I could use a rest from that." Hearing a chuckle from her supporters, she shot a heated glare at the two, but was also surprised that the warlock was still up and moving. "Before you ask Jaina, I've started physical training during my stay in Quel'Thalas, and I've continued to do so ever since. It's also why I was able to keep up on my swordplay from Master Hawke." Shaking her head, Arthas finally spoke up as he watched the village's soldiers working out. "It looks like they're preparing for battle."
When they entered the village, one of the footmen approached Arthas with a worried look. "Prince Arthas! During the night, a vast army of undead warriors began attacking villages at random. Now it's headed this way!" The four heroes were looking worried now as they looked to one another. "Dammit, Jaina I need you to go and-"
"That won't be necessary." Looking to the spell-caster that dared to interrupt him at a time like this, he noticed that Eidolon was using his finger to slightly burn letters into a piece of paper before rolling it around the hilt, sealing it in place with a mark from the Kirin Tor, and began charging his Fel into the blade. One trick that Kalcifer taught him when he was told about the blade, was that it was possible to use its blinking capabilities to reach specific people at insanely high speeds. So with a few alterations to the runes applied to it, the Javelin was now the single most quickest method of sending messages across the entire kingdom of Lordaron. "Who am I sending this message to?"
Before Arthas could answer, it was Jaina who looked on in amazement and curiosity that answered. "Name is Uther Lightbringer, leader of the Silver Hand." Getting the sword into position, he chanted the name over and over as he charged the blade with Fel, making it glow in an ominous green. "Uther Lightbringer, Leader of The Silver Hand. Now GO!" With a powerful throw, the trajectory of the blade was blocked by many circular runes that spun midair and, upon the sword's contact with it, flashed out of existence entirely. "With any luck, depending upon the distance, it should take about half an hour if he's in Lordaron. Wow, I am exhausted, gimme a second to…"
Falling to his hands and knees in exhaustion, which made the two heroines flock to his side, Arthas looked towards the crates of grain, noticing that something was… odd about them. When he spotted the contents, he looked to the footman he spoke to earlier. "What were in those crates?" Looking confused, the footman replied anyways. "Those carried grain from Andorhal. Don't worry, milord, it was safely distributed to the villagers." "Oh no."
Sylvanas was the first to see, and act, when she saw almost all of the villagers twitch on their feet, looking like they were having a seizure. When their skin turned green and began to make a move to those who weren't also becoming the same thing, she pulled out her bow and let an arrow fly in a heartbeat, nailing it between the eyes. "Everyone! The plague doesn't kill people; it turns them into the undead! DEFEND YOURSELVES!"
Just another bad day for Eidolon, and he was cursing his luck profusely as he was soon charged at by 8 other 'villagers'.
Apologies for the cliffhanger, but I needed to get this posted out to make sure that the story doesn't die. But, I'm still working on it gladly and I hope to still do so for some time.
Anyways, there you have it; Jaina wasn't forced to leave when the Defending of Hearthglen happened, but now our heroic warlock is without his only other weapon, which may risk his exposure to better defend himself and the village. What will he do? How would Arthas or even Uther react to the truth? Okay, Arthas would be obvious, but Uther is definitely debatable.
Please go ahead and leave a review if you liked it and/or any possible fixes I may need to look over: I know I'm not perfect when it comes to stuff like this and I'm willing to admit it. That is always the first step to learn and overcome your obstacles. Also, keep in mind that I have a poll set up for whom Eidolon will be pairing with, and by extension joining their faction, when the Final Hour comes down to it. I hope you liked it and I'll be sure to work on the next chapter soon.
Sincerely,
ninetails927
